WASHINGTON – Some conservative Republicans are still uncertain or unhappy about the party’s front-runner for the White House: Mitt Romney.

“For all his money, for all his fame, Mitt Romney may wind up winning the Republican nomination and that’s what a lot of conservatives feel,” says Bob Schieffer, CBS News chief Washington correspondent and Face The Nation host. “But they’re just not very excited about it.”

Schieffer spoke with WTOP’s Mike Moss and Bruce Alan on Friday.

They discussed Romney’s future and the unusual suggestion coming out of the Conservative Political Action Conference here in Washington this week. The suggestion at CPAC is to shift energy and money away from the presidential contest and focus on wining state and congressional elections.

“The more (Romney) tries to convince conservatives that he’s a conservative, the more his popularity or favorable rating goes down among independent voters in the country,” says Schieffer.

The suggestion out of CPAC indicates some Republicans feel the GOP is putting their money “in the wrong place,” he says, adding Romney seems to be experiencing the same political problems he had the last time he ran for president.

“That is, to convince conservatives that he’s one of them. A lot of conservatives just aren’t buying it yet,” Schieffer says.

The three victories that former Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Pa., picked up this week in Colorado, Minnesota and Missouri “really sends up a flag” in the race for the GOP presidential nomination, says Schieffer.

“The people in the Romney campaign, if they’re not running scared, they ought to be right now. Because it just shows how vulnerable he is.”

Bob Schieffer joins WTOP every Friday at 6:50 a.m. Listen to his full audio at right.